The present invention relates generally to apparatus for mounting one or more accessories to a bicycle. More particularly, this invention pertains to an improved bicycle dropout frame member for interchangeably mounting a variety of accessories, either alone or in simultaneous combination, to a bicycle frame.
In the prior art, U.S. Pat. No. 4,883,283 of Hazelett et al. discloses a bicycle hitch for a one-wheel trailer with a horizontal tubular hitch bar.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,240,266 of Kelley et al. discloses an improvement in the Hazelett et al. hitch.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,985 of Nowlin shows a bicycle buggy apparatus having a tongue-and-socket pin hitch attachable to a sleeve placed on the seat support frame member.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,039,120 of Stowe teaches a bicycle towing apparatus including a horizontal member vertically pivotable about a seat support member and a pair of legs extending from the rear end of the horizontal member to the rear wheel axle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,328,915 of Melton, III discloses apparatus for mounting a basket or other accessory to a carrier rack of a conventional bicycle.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,583,550 of Dennis et al. shows a support for attaching a wire basket to the front of a bicycle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,577,786 of Dowrick et al. discloses a device for securing a pannier bag to a bicycle frame.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,418,850 of Jackson et al. discloses a pannier which is attachable to the rear carrier rack of a bicycle.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,440,331 of Schimmels teaches a construction of a child protective carrier mountable over a bicycle wheel.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,395,130 of Rubin discloses a bicycle balance trainer. The bicycle balance trainer is essentially a handle which attaches to a bicycle at positions and with bolts usually employed for mounting training wheels but does not suggest a dropout frame member capable of simultaneously mounting several bicycle accessories to a bicycle frame. The handle of the Rubin invention is used by a person to give aid to a novice bicycle rider learning to ride a bicycle.
There are many accessories which are currently useful to bicyclists. These include removable fenders over the front and/or rear wheels, bicycle cargo carrying racks which may be positioned over either wheel, cargo carrying racks with integral baskets, saddlebags or panniers which are generally mounted on a cargo carrying rack, and even small trailers for carrying children or other cargo.
While all of the above-indicated accessories are known and available on the market, each accessory typically has its own mounting system by which it is attached to the bicycle. At times, the mounting system of one available accessory makes simultaneous mounting of other accessories difficult, inconvenient or impossible. Generally, the various accessory mounts are incompatible.
The bicycle mounting devices in the prior art also have additional drawbacks, namely that most such devices are attached in a semi-permanent way and require tools and installation time to mount or remove the device, and that those few devices which quickly engage or release the accessory are rarely lockable or capable or capable of protecting the accessory and its contents from being stolen. None of the references enables the simultaneous mounting of a wide variety of standard accessories to a bicycle, whereby individual accessories may be quickly and easily mounted or removed as desired.
In addition to the lack of points of attachment for bicycle accessories, another recognized problem in the mounting of bicycle accessories to the frame of a bicycle is that generally, the points of attachment are only as sturdy as the mechanical fastener used to secure mounting apparatus to the frame of the bicycle. And as was stated above, it may be difficult to secure an attachment apparatus to the frame of a bicycle. To remedy this problem, the present invention provides an attachment apparatus for simultaneous mounting of multiple bicycle accessories that is integral to the frame of the bicycle. The attachment apparatus takes the form of an improved dropout frame member which in part comprises a web extending rearward from the frame of the bicycle, the web having formed therein a slot for securing an axle of a bicycle wheel to the frame and also apertures for attaching bicycle accessories to the frame of the bicycle. The web may be arcuate, rectangular, or any other suitable geometric configuration.
The present invention may be characterized as an improvement upon a standard, prior art bicycle dropout. Bicycle dropouts typically comprise a plate having a slot that is arranged to receive a wheel axle, a plurality of bores formed adjacent the slot, and a pair of frame attachment structures connected to the plate. The frame. attachment structures are used to attach the slotted plate to a lower beam and a strut of a bicycle frame. In addition, the frame attachment structures each have an axis and the respective axes meet at an intersection. The improvement of the present invention comprises an elongate web formed integral with the plate which extends upwardly and rearwardly from the intersection of the axes of the frame attachment structures and beyond the plurality of bores. The web has an outer side and an inner side that are bounded by a lower edge, a leading edge, and a trailing edge. The web also comprises a plurality of accessory attachment apertures formed through the web in a predetermined arrangement adjacent the trailing edge of the web. Typically, the web will span more than 90xc2x0 between its bottom and leading edges but it may also span less than 90xc2x0. The web will not typically extend below the lower beam of the bicycle frame.
The improved bicycle dropout may have coupled thereto a central body having a plurality of receiving slots for receiving a plurality of attachment members of a plurality of primary accessory legs. The receiving slots of the central body have a plurality of spring biased levers disposed therein such that a lever intersects each of the receiving slots to engage and retain the ends of the primary accessory legs of each of the attachment members that may be inserted into the receiving slots. The receiving slots in the central body are also generally provided with a cover that is secured to the web so as to sandwich the central body between the cover and the web of the improved dropout frame member.
In addition to the receiving slots, the central body may also be provided with a hitch slot sized so as to receive an insertable end of a removable towing hitch apparatus. Where the central body is provided with a hitch slot, the cover has formed therein a narrower hitch retaining slot that is positioned over the hitch slot in the central body so as to retain the insertable end of the towing hitch apparatus within the hitch slot. A latching mechanism which may be included within the hitch slot to selectively retain the insertable end of the towing hitch apparatus within the complementary slots of the central body and the cover. Furthermore, a locking mechanism for locking the insertable end of the towing hitch apparatus within the complementary slots of the central body and cover may also be provided.
As an alternative to bolting or otherwise connecting the central body to the web of the improved bicycle dropout of the present invention, the central body may be formed integral to the web. The integral central body will include all of the structural features described above, including, but not limited to, a plurality of receiving slots for receiving the attachment members of a plurality of primary accessory legs, a hitch slot sized to receive an insertable end of a removable towing hitch apparatus, a cover arranged to be secured over the integral central body, the cover having formed therein a hitch retaining slot positioned over the hitch slot in the central body to retain the insertable end of the towing hitch apparatus within the hitch slot in the central body, a latching mechanism which may selectively retain the insertable end of the towing hitch apparatus within the hitch slot of the central body, and a locking mechanism for locking the insertable end of the towing hitch apparatus within the hitch slot of the central body.
A bicycle dropout frame member constructed and arranged according to the present invention may comprise a plate having a slot for receiving a bicycle wheel axle and first and second frame attachment structures extending from the leading edge of the plate for securing the plate to the frame of a bicycle. At least one accessory mounting post may extend from the trailing edge of the plate of the bicycle dropout frame member to permit bicycle accessories to be attached to the bicycle. The mounting post is preferably arranged to receive and retain thereover an accessory leg, e.g. the mounting post is generally cylindrical from its tip to its base and has a shoulder formed around the base thereof so as to limit the insertion of the mounting post into a mating cavity formed in the end of the accessory leg. Typically, the mounting post will also comprise a retaining mechanism for securely and releasably retaining the accessory leg on the mounting post.
The bicycle dropout frame member may also comprise a towing hitch structure for towing a trailer behind the bicycle. In this case, the plate or web of the dropout frame member will be constructed to span the region between the first and second frame attachment structures. A suitable towing hitch structure will comprise a stopped bore formed in the plate between the first and second attachment structures. A locking channel is formed through the plate from the leading edge of the plate to the stopped bore. A hitch pin secured to the trailer to be towed behind the bicycle is sized to be received within the stopped bore and may be retained in the stopped bore by a key that is insertable into the locking channel to engage a groove formed around the end of the hitch pin. The key may also be lockable so as to prevent unwanted persons from detaching the trailer from the bicycle.
The improved bicycle dropout frame member summarized above may be used to support or as a part of a universal accessory mounting system such as the one described both herein and claimed in the parent of this present application.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be readily understood by reading the following description in conjunction with the accompanying figures of the drawings wherein like reference numerals have been applied to designate like elements throughout the several views.